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Aston Community Organisations Reviews & News Edition 69 Spring 2019 2 Aston upon Trent Parish Council Chairman: Cllr.Edward Hicklin, Vice Chair: Cllr.Tony Hurrell, Cllr.Catherine Alberts, Cllr.Tom Green, Cllr.Jean Longley, Cllr.Mike Selby, Cllr.Chris Toon Councillor Changes Haydn Wheeler and Steve Graham, two long standing and experienced councillors stood down in the autumn. They will both be missed as they brought commitment and knowledge to the table. Much of the work of Parish councillors goes unseen so on your behalf we offer our heartfelt thanks for their many years of dedicated service to the Parish through their role of councillor. We welcome Tash Hyde to the Council. Tash is to be co-opted at the January meeting. Tash is a well-known figure in the village and we are confident she has much to offer. Welcome Tash. Some Christmas Thanks We can’t let the old year pass without passing our thanks to those who give their time and make so much effort to make Christmas special in the village. Thanks to all those who contributed this year, Santa around the village was enjoyable as always, the Village Walk as popular as ever, the Tree and village Green lights getting better year on year, Carol services, inside and out and those Advent portals bring an exciting build up to the big day.... thank you all. Parking, Parking, Parking and other ‘Highways’ related issues For a number of meetings the issue of inconsiderate parking seems to have dominated our meetings. This together with the problems being experienced close to the church, nearside parking close to the bend and the difficulties of exiting to Swarkstone via Cuttle Bridge have led to Parish council requesting a meeting with both County and District Councils to discuss all these issues at one time. The Parish council has lobbied every large scale planning application with concerns regarding highways congestion, but we seem to be unheard. Parking at school times seems unreasonable, parking on Weston Road creates blockages, parking close to Hill Crest can be dangerous, parking on the bend close to the Church is dangerous, parking close to the post office is inconsiderate, Moor lane development ........the list is endless and many village residents are impacted daily and there seems to be no coherent plan to examine both the reasons for the upturn in vehicle traffic and the consequences of that upturn for residents, never mind discussion of solutions. We will try our best, we do hear the complaints. Aston Recreation Centre. Things continue to progress. Car park down, new fencing up, balcony installed and even the new Clock should be working by the time you read this. A really great facility which now needs to be looked after. All villagers have contributed to this and now users need to respect both the building and the work individuals have done to bring the building to life......mud on walls, broken shower doors not a good start. Commemorative Stone We are sure you will have noticed this addition to the Village Green. A ‘very sensitive’ and ‘appropriate ‘commemoration is the majority feedback. Thanks to the Councillors, members of Royal British Legion and Tarmac for their endeavours on this venture. Community Award At the Parish Council Annual Meeting we acknowledge our community person or group of the year with our award. However we need you to make the nomination, who deserves to be recognised. Please contact the Clerk for more details. For up to date news of council activities and events log on to www.facebook.com/AstononTrentPC Contact us at Aston-on-Trent Parish Clerk ~ Fiona Stanbrook 01332 793272 [email protected] Friends of Aston Brickyard Plantation Whilst waiting for the arrival of spring the FAB volunteers are hard at work, clearing away some of the debris of winter, fallen wind-blown branches and preparing areas for new trees and wildflower seeds. After the theft of our craft-built bench we have installed a couple of ‘up-cycled’ benches for visitors made from old re-claimed pallets which offer a rustic opportunity to sit and admire the seasonal changes. Some buds are already emerging from branches and we have been coppicing the hazel groves and felling a small number of self-planted ash where oaks in particular have been struggling to find light from a dense canopy. The felled trees will either be left as dead-wood habitats for small mammals and insects or used to build more benches or habitat piles. Working to our 10-year management plan we are consciously working to a ‘light touch’ conservation approach whereby we don’t over-work the site, leaving it to itself unless overgrown vegetation or lack of light is detrimental to flora and fauna. We are fortunate to work very closely with DCC Countryside Services, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and a range of wildlife groups focusing on (for example) birds, aquatics, hedgehogs, butterflies, wildflowers and trees etc many of whom we commission to undertake annual surveys as part of our natural ‘health check’ As ever, visitors, dog walkers, families are very welcome to visit and enjoy the trails around the woodlands and grasslands – we hope to see you on site as a visitor or interested in becoming a FAB volunteer. Don’t forget to visit and ‘like’ our Facebook page Aston Brickyard Plantation for news and photos 3 Aston & Weston Royal British Legion Happy New Year! 2018 was a significant year for members as we marked the centenary of the WW1 Armistice with a number of events across the Remembrance weekend. Members would like to express our thanks to all those who marched in; lined the route and volunteered to marshal the Remembrance parade, doing so safely and respectfully. Thanks also go out to David Brown for providing the parade with marching music after the disbanding of the Midshipman’s Band. If anyone knows of any marching bands in the local area that would be available for 2019, please contact our secretary. The Legion would also like to extend our thanks once again to our Poppy Appeal Organiser Jane Archer, for coordinating a fantastic door to door and static tin collection service as well as organising the annual Poppy Picnic. The Picnic this year raised £356.25 and the current total for the Poppy Appeal from Aston, Weston, Shardlow and surrounding areas is £5296.71!!! At our AGM in October, Derek Jackson became our new Branch President and after 21 years, Jim Ballington has decided to take a well-deserved retirement from being Branch Secretary. Members would like to extend their thanks to Jim for his ongoing service and dedication to the branch over the years. If you would like to join the Legion or for any other enquiries please contact our new Branch Secretary Katie Archer on 07809201624. Branch meetings are held on the 2nd Monday of each month, 19:30hrs upstairs in the White Hart- new members always welcome. Supported by Village Walk 2018 The village walk committee would like to thank all walkers who helped to make this year’s event a success. Several hundred people took part and enjoyed the varied routes. It was good to see many stay for refreshments in the Memorial Hall after the walk. First and foremost it is a community event and the money raised from the walk has been distributed to the following village groups: Village pub & Dining Aston Bell Ringers Tower Fund Aston Bowls Club Aston and Weston Brownies Aston on Trent SAVE Recreation in Aston Don’t forget, there will be the The Village Shop Aston on Trent 46th village walk on December 27 2019. The White Hart We hope to see you there! Aston on Trent Aston and Weston Bowls Club The green is currently closed for play. The start of the new season will be Sunday March 31st (the day British Summer Time begins), although this date is subject to weather conditions/state of the green. The annual dinner was held at The Cooper’s Arms in November. Prizes for the club competitions were handed out during the evening. The Club person of the year was awarded to the club’s secretary, Sue Shadbolt, in recognition of her hard work not just as secretary but also communicating with members and organising events. It is hoped that a new perimeter fence around the bowls pavilion and green will be installed before the start of the season. Following the Fish and Chip supper and quiz night that was held in January, the next social event for members will be a curling activity evening in the Memorial Hall on Saturday February 23rd. An indoor games night and a walk are planned for March. For club information please contact Jim Ballington on 405268, or Sue Shadbolt on 793083. Aston on Trent Primary School The Staff, Governors and Pupils would like to wish all readers a Happy and Healthy New Year. We look forward to another exciting year, with lots of new experiences for our children. The Christmas productions on December 18th and 19th were a huge success. All the children performed beautifully, and we would like to thank parents and staff for helping children with their costumes. At the end of term the Artyfact Theatre came into school again, this year to perform ‘A Christmas Carol’ (very kindly paid for by ASPA). This performance was very much enjoyed by the children. We currently have places for co-opted governors on our governing body. If you would like to find out more information about the vacancies, please email [email protected].